Mystery Boots
by PoisonWolf
Summary: Who's watching Alexandria? Why haven't they come out of the shadows before? What do they have to do with the Alexandrians and Negan? This is my take on who the mystery boots could possibly be, hope you enjoy :D.
1. Chapter 1

_*This is my take on who could possibly be the mystery boots from season 7, I've got no idea if this will be a good story but hey ho here goes.*  
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* * *

Trust. The key to survival in the new world, something that Rick had realised too soon was something that Negan did not possess. He had trusted that Negan would uphold his end of their deal, that he would keep his word. Rick had claimed that they would be ok as long as they followed Negan's words...he didn't realise then just how wrong he was. Denise and Spencer, two more additions to the list of those who had died by Negan's hand.

How could he have gotten it so wrong? He thought that if he fell into line then he could keep his people protected from the monster they're forced to serve. But that wasn't what happened and it never would be, the world no longer fits into these neat little agreements. Rick's bitten down nails dug into the palms of his hands as he thought of their broken deal and of the people they'd therefore lost. Something that Rick had been forced to bury rose inside of him. A white hot rage filled his core as he looked at the blood stained road of Alexandria. A disturbing cocktail of primal rage and heart wrenching grief consumed Rick as he turned to look at the broken faces of the residents of Alexandria.

"I believed the best thing for us was to bow our heads and agree so that we lost no one else. Today has shown me that I was naive...Negan will fall and he will see that he has messed with the wrong people! This was his worst and final mistake!"

He looked at his peoples faces to see them spark with rage and determination, a signal that they agreed with Rick's words. Rick grabbed the trucks keys and looked over at Carl, Michonne, Rosita and Tara who all nodded and followed him to the gates. Once there Carl, Rosita and Tara climbed into the back as Michonne climbed into the passenger seat. Rick took hold of the drivers door handle when he froze feeling as though there were eyes glued to his back. He turned to glare at the trees surrounding Alexandria scanning them cautiously.

"Rick? What is it?" Michonnes concerned voice carried over to Rick's ears who shook his head.

"I thought I saw something..."

"What?"

"Just another walker most likely" He clambers into the drivers seat and sets off to the HillTop.

* * *

A pair of bright blue tired eyes watch from their vantage point in the trees as Rick and the others climb into the truck. They meet Rick's eyes when he looks over in their direction but they know their camoflauge keeps them hidden from sight. Rick jumps into the truck and drives away leaving them to watch over the residents of Alexandria with narrowed eyes.

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*Sorry it's short but if you like it please let me know and I'll do another and make it longer :)*


	2. They did what!

*I've had a few more ideas since the last chapter hopefully you guys like them :)*

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Walking with his group to the main house at HillTop Rick could feel it again...like there was a target on his back. He shifted uncomfortably at the thought of who could be watching him and his group. The easiest thing would be to say that it was a walker and nothing more buf the walkers can't see them over the HillTops fences which meant if something was watching them it had to be human. Now he had the penultimate question to find the answer to, were they friend or foe?

Had Negan sent some of his people to spy on them? Or was there someone else out there far worse than Negan that wanted them dead and wanted what little of their stuff they had left? Could they be a new and much needed advesery? Or was Rick being paranoid that someone was even there? He could just be imagining the eyes he feels glued to him. It could just be his brain reminding him to watch his back for any traitors.

Rick kept these thoughts in mind as he entered the house with the others. Once inside Gregory sauntered out of his office with his usual arrogance and turned to glare at Rick's group, making sure to plaster on a smile that everyone knew was fake.

"And to what do I owe this pleasure of yet another visit from you?"

Rick walked over to him "Things have gone too far for too long, we need to work together to overthrow Negan and take back what's ours. He has done nothing but take from us and break every word he's ever spoken to us, it's time for him to fall."

Gregory glares at him and shakes his head "Our deal with Negan is perfectly fine, we do as he asks and we get left alone. I see no issue with it and I won't let you mess that up"

Maggie steps forward "They tried to kill you and your people in your sleep, they tore down your gate and let walkers in to kill you! Your deal is already broken!"

He squares up to Maggie "Now you listen here missy -"

Paul interrupted Gregory as he stood between the two "Gregory you know she's right and so is Rick. Negan cannot be trusted he may decide one day that we have outlived our purpose and kill us all. They think we don't know the other communities exist and that we're too weak to fight but we aren't and we won't just lay back and let him have his way. We have to work together to survive. Every single community that he has touched must rise together to ensure each others safety"

Paul looks to Gregory for his answer but he merely grimaces and storms back into his office slamming the door behind him. Sighing Rick turned to face the group.

"There's something else...since me and Aaron got back from our supply run it's felt as though someone has been following us. I don't know who it could be or what they want but we need to assume the worst. They could be one of Negan's men sent to keep an eye on us so I need all of you to be careful. Especially you Maggie and you Daryl. They think you're dead Maggie and they can't know Daryl came here when he escaped because then they'll know our communittees are linked."

He looks at Daryl and Maggie who both nod in agreement. Michonne steps forward to say something but is interrupted by the front door banging open and one of the Hill Tops residents running in.

They gasped to get their breath back as they had clearly run here. Paul goes over to check they're ok and they shakily nod. "Saviours...i-in the w-woods...tried to st-steal my supplies...dead...all of them."

Rick raises an eyebrow and leans forward "You killed them?"

The resident shakes their head "No I was getting ready to hand my stuff over when this rope came out of the trees and dragged all three of them up! They came back down but their necks were broken and their heads had been stabbed so they couldn't reanimate!"

Paul carefully leads the resident to a sofa getting them to sit down and calm their breathing before turning to look at Rick. "Does this mean they're on our side?"

Michonne looks uncomfortably out of the window "Or they're worse than Negan...look what they did to three peolple single handed. We have to watch our backs. They've proven how dangerous they are"

* * *

A figure climbs down a large oak tree, their identity concealed via their many layers of clothes and rag covering their nose and mouth. They look at the three saviour corpses that lay by their feet "So long shitheads". They walk away leaving the fresh corpses to the walkers that have stumbled by.

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*Hope you enjoyed please leave a comment and I will try to get the next chapter up tomorrow...maybe they'll find mystery boots...*


	3. Mystery solved?

I decided to rewrite this chapter as I felt it was too fast and out of character which was confirmed by a very helpful guest review :) Sounds sarcastic but I mean it thanks guest review it confirmed my suspicions so here's my update :)

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Rick paces inside the main house then turns to his group "We need to make contact with them to see if they can help us and if they are dangerous then there's enough of us to kill them regardless of what they can do."

Michonne looks unsure "What if we're walking into a trap?"

"It may just be a risk we have to take."

She nods slowly at him as Paul steps forward "How do we lead them out of the trees though?"

Rick thinks carefully then looks at the resident "Did you see them?"

They shakily nod "Yeah... Well I saw their clothes and stuff but I could recognise them again if you need me to"

"Good because we'll take you back out there and pretend that we're saviours, that should get them to come out to save you again" He looks at Carl, Daryl and Michonne "We'll cover our faces so that the person doesn't recognise us then we can grab them once they come out of the tree, ok?"

They nod and begin to cover their faces with rags and scarves before following the resident out with the other Alexandrians following behind. Rick and the others walk towards the woods as Tara and Rosita get into the truck and drive behind them.

* * *

The masked figure scans the forest around them for any signs of the dead or living, freezing when they hear voices and ducking behind a nearby tree. They peek around the corner to see the same idiot from before being forced through the woods by four saviours, a woman, a teen and two men. 'Why do I bother saving these morons' they think to themselves as they watch with narrowed eyes.

The teen seems to be keeping an eye out for something, probably walkers. They're ropes would take too long to set up in this situation... It will have to be hand to hand combat then, something they wanted to avoid. They see the prisoner get shoved and that's when they step into action. They sneak up behind the teen and knock them over the back of the head with a nearby log making him to his knees. This grabs the woman's attention who raises a sword to their throat to which they raise their leg to kick her very harshly in the stomach winding her. They then pull two guns out of their waistband and hold them to the teens and woman's heads then glares at the men.

"One more step and I blow out their fucking brains. Now let your hostage go"

The man with the shorter hair raises his axe slightly "Lower your guns, you don't know what you're doing"

"I know exactly what I'm doing! Let your hostage go!"

They see the man nod to someone and just as they turn to look at who he nodded at a sharp pain that comes with being struck by a blunt object runs through the back of their head making their world go blurry before it goes black and they pass out.

Carl gets to his feet and catches the masked stranger before they fall to the floor and looks at Rosita who's holding a shovel behind the stranger "Good timing"

She smiles slightly "Thanks, we better get them back to Alexandria and in the cell before they wake up"

Rick nods and helps Carl carry the stranger to the truck and carefully get them inside.

* * *

Once back at Alexandria Rick and Daryl carry the stranger into the cell and lock them in as Carl and Michonne walk in and watch the stranger as well waiting for them to wake up and answer their questions.

Pain. A lot of it in the back of their head. Whoever hit them has a damn good swing. They groan slightly as they rub their head and sit up, freezing when they feel eyes on them. They slowly look up to see Rick, Daryl, Carl and Michonne looking at them. 'Wait what?! I thought they were the good guys... How did they?... Oh... They tricked me... Well played I must say' they think to themselves as Rick kneels down and looks at them.

"What's your name?"

They look up at him with bright blue eyes shining "Ambrose"

"Why are you watching us?"

They carefully stand which causes Rick and the others to adapt strong stances ready to fight "Why did you make me think you were saviours, I was going to kill you whether or not you let them go. Dumb move on your part"

Carl raises an eyebrow "So you're not with the saviours?"

They sigh "Like hell am I with those assholes"

Carl smirks to himself amused "Then who are you with?"

"Myself"

Michonne glares at them slightly "No way you made it this long on your own, you don't seem old enough"

"I had a group... They died"

Hey eyes soften "I'm sorry"

They shrug "Ain't gonna change what happened"

Rick looks at them "Take off your mask and hood. Show us who you are"

"No"

"I suggest you do as we say"

"Or what? If you wanted to kill me you would have done by now."

Rick glares at him "We don't trust anyone who doesn't show us their real self. And if we don't trust you then we kill you. So if you want to keep breathing then I suggest you help us trust you"

They glare at him then slowly lower their hood and remove the scarf from their mouth. That's when they see that the stranger is a young boy no older than seventeen with elbow length long ginger hair, light freckles across his nose and cheekbones, a slim smooth face that looks too delicate and out of place in this world, plump reddish lips, and bright piercing blue eyes. "Happy now?"

The Alexandrians look at each other and Rick nods "We're going to discuss what to do with you with the rest of our group, the majority vote rules. Lets hope they want to take a chance on you." With that Rick and the others vacate the cell leaving Ambrose to stare at the cell walls.

"Now how are you getting yourself outta this one?..."

* * *

Once all the Alexandrians (plus Maggie, Sasha, Enid and Paul) were gathered in the church Rick took his place at the front of the room "I'm sure you all know of the boy we've captured, he was the one watching us and we're here to discuss what should be done about him"

Daryl looks up from under his fringe "Kid like that's gotta have a load of secrets, we don't wanna get involved with that...nothing good can come outta this."

"Yeah but didn't you guys think that about me at first? That I was more trouble than I was worth?" Paul calmly enquires.

Sasha nods "He's got a point there, plus this boy can fight and fight pretty damn well. We need that right now."

"And what if he's trying to hurt our group? If he's lying so he can sneak in and take what's ours?" Rick adds.

Maggie carefully stands "I agree with Rick, can we really afford to take that chance? This boy may say all the right things but he could be thinking and planning something completely different. It has happended to us before, so what's to say it won't happen again?"

Enid stands up "I think that we should talk to him, all of us."

Rick thinks it over for a minute then looks at the group "Enid's right. You may all think differently after talking to him, me and Daryl will go and get him." Daryl stands and follows him out of the room returning a few minutes later with Ambrose. He has his hands tied in ropes and is led to a chair at the front of the room where he warily sits as Rick and Daryl stand either side of him and Rick looks at the group "This is Ambrose"

The Alexandrians look the boy over who sits with a straight back, a sign of defensiveness. Maggie is the first to speak "You're so young"

He looks her in the eye "If my age is an issue then I will gladly leave" He goes to stand but Rick's firm hand on his shoulder stops him "Or I'll just stay here"

Tara walks over to Ambrose and he looks up at her "Why did you save those people from the saviours?"

"Because no one deserves to be beaten and broken by those shits"

She smiles and looks at Rick "I like him"

Rick tries to hide his smile at Tara's goofiness "Why should we trust you?"

Ambrose opens his mouth to answer but freezes when he hears Judith coo and looks over to where Carl is holding his sister. They all look at Ambrose who stiffens "You have a child?..."

Rick reaches for his machete on his belt as he watches the boy "Yes she's my daughter and Carl's sister"

"H...How have you kept her alive?" The boys voice breaks slightly as he watches Judith play with a stuffed animal.

Maggie looks at him "Did you know a child?"

This question turns everyones heads to Ambrose who nods slightly then tears his eyes away from Judith opting to stare at the floor instead.

Gabriel speaks up "What happened to the child?"

Ambrose plays with his gloved hands nervously as he meets Gabriels eyes, the hurt clearly evident in his own "I'd rather not bring up the past"

Tara looks up "I trust him Rick"

Maggie nods "So do I"

Enid stands "I do too"

Aaron, Eric, Gabriel, Paul and Michonne all express the same sentiment leading Rick to walk in front of Ambrose and look him in the eye. "A week, we'll keep you here to see if we can trust you for a week but you will have to have one of us with you at all times and you will sleep in the locked cell. The first sign of trouble and we kill you no questions asked, got it?"

He nods "Yeah I got it...um...thanks I guess...for you know, not killing me" Daryl unties the ropes letting Ambrose rub his wrists.

Carl stands up "I'll show you where you can wash up, follow me" He hands Judith to Michonne then leaves alongside Tara who lead him into a house and up to the bathroom.

Tara smiles at him "If you go in and undress then pass me your clothes I'll get them cleaned for you"

Ambrose looks at the bathroom unsure and Carl raises and eyebrow "Scared of showers?"

He shakes his head "Just not used to warm hospitality is all..."

Tara looks at him with warm eyes "Well you should we're lovely people here, once you get to know us that is"

He smiles slightly then goes into the bathroom and shuts the door then begins to undress. A minute later he's holding his dirty clothes with only his elbow length black gloves remaining on his body. He opens the door slightly and hands the clothes to Tara "Thanks..."

She smiles "Do you want me to give your gloves a wash too?"

His eyes widen "No!...I-I mean no it's fine I'd rather keep them with me"

"Well there's clean clothes on the counter while these are being washed, we'll be downstairs when you're done" She leaves.

Carl looks at him "I'll be waiting here so don't be too long"

Ambrose nods then shuts and locks the bathroom door walking over to the shower and turning it on. He catches his reflection in the mirror and looks away before shakily reaching up removing the mirror from the wall making sure to turn it around so that he could not see his reflection when he placed it on the floor. Once under the spray he allowed himself to close his eyes quickly opening them again when haunting memories flashed across closed eyelids.

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Hopefully a better version of chapter 3, thought it needed a lot of readjustments lol :) Let me know what you think of this chapter :)


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